Dolphins & Cobras draw in Oudtshoon:
Oudtshoon – At the end of an exciting contest that saw the fortunes of both sides ebb and flow, the Sunfoil Series clash between the Hollywoodbets Dolphins and the WSB Cape Cobras at the Recreation Ground in Oudtshoon ended as a draw before tea on the final day.
Having had a deficit of over 100 runs to overturn in their second innings, the Dolphins would have been happy with how they went about their business amassing 360/4 in the second innings with both Vaughn van Jaarsveld and Morné van Wyk registering centuries.
Starting the day on 130/1, both Van Wyk and Van Jaarsveld flourished in the morning of the final day’s play. Van Jaarsveld was the first to three figures, his first hundred of the season to go with five half centuries, however he fell just four balls later for 100 – his sixteenth First Class ton.
Van Jaarsveld’s prolific start to the season has seen him rack up 480 runs at an average of 60 runs per innings.
Morné van Wyk then lost his batting partner in Khaya Zondo for 28 before he went on to register his 20th First Class hundred off 158 deliveries and by that stage the Dolphins were 248/3, a lead of 145 runs.
Van Wyk then became Dane Piedt’s second victim for a well-played 106 before Dane Vilas continued where he left off in the first innings.
Vilas scored a vital 161 in the first innings to get his side out of some trouble, and his second innings knock of 64 not out showed that the middle-order stroke-maker is hitting some good form ahead of the upcoming CSA T20 Challenge.
Cody Chetty was also in the runs once again in the second innings. The wristy batsman has shown this season that he has got the ability to contribute handsomely in four day cricket and finished 46 not out before the game was called a draw.
Chetty, who has two centuries to his name in the first five games of the Sunfoil Series, missed the match against the bizhub Highveld Lions due to injury but will be happy with how the first half of the four day campaign went for him with 406 runs at an average of just over 81.
The Dolphins would have been somewhat disappointed with their bowling performance on the third morning when they had the Cobras 284/6. A young, inexperienced bowling attack that was missing the likes of Rob Frylinck and Keshav Maharaj were diligent in their work throughout with Calvin Savage bagging four wickets in the Cobras innings.
Kerwin Mungroo, in his second Dolphins match, and Keith Dudgeon, making his debut, would have learnt a lot from the encounter having to lead the attack with the new ball.
The Dolphins’ focus now shifts to T20 cricket with the CSA T20 Challenge getting underway on Sunday, 12 November against the WSB Cape Cobras at SuperSport Park, Centurion.
Late Dolphins surge levels matters on day three:
Oudtshoon – A strong batting display in the final session of the day saw the Hollywoodbets Dolphins wipe out the deficit as they finished on 130/1 on day three of their Sunfoil Series clash with the WSB Cape Cobras at the Recreation Ground on Wednesday.
The Cape Cobras began the day on 284/6, 43 runs behind the Dolphins first innings score, and they erased that deficit with the loss of one wicket in the morning.
All-rounder Vernon Philander provided stubborn resistance for the Dolphins as he registered a half century while he was ably supported by his captain Dane Peidt and Lizaad Williams as the hosts added 103 runs for the final three wickets.
It was toil for the Dolphins bowlers who put in an honest spell of bowling with Calvin Savage bagging figures of 4/74 with Kerwin Mungroo and Prenelan Subrayen both snatching two sticks each.
The deficit stood at 102 when the Dolphins began their second innings and the men from Durban lost the wicket of Senuran Muthusamy early, falling victim to Philander, for the second time in the match, for seven.
This brought Vaughn van Jaarsveld to the crease where he joined Morné van Wyk with the score on 12 and the pair began to resurrect their side’s hopes with a strong display of counter-attacking.
The run-rate and the ante was lifted as the pair scored freely and they took their partnership past 100 at a good rate.
Both batsmen past fifty in quick time and managed to keep the run-rate over four runs to the over for a majority of the post-tea session.
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